Fix Outlook Could Not Create the Work File Within Seconds

Introduction

There are many online reports and queries relating to “Outlook Could Not Create the Work File.” Outlook users often find this problem troublesome and panic whether this problem is irreversible. 

However, there is no need to worry, because it’s a minor issue, one that Outlook users can fix themselves with ease. 

This article will discuss the causes and symptoms and provide solutions to the “Outlook Could Not Create the Work File” issue. But first, for your information, let me tell you what Outlook is. 

Outlook

It is dumb to think that Outlook users are looking for this content without first knowing about Outlook; this is to inform a selected few who may not know about Outlook.

Outlook is a part of Microsoft’s Office suite, an email client that offers contact managing, task managing, calendering, and record-keeping as additional features. Built by Microsoft, Outlook is very useful and popular software.

Also, Read – Open OST file Without Outlook

Cause Of The Problem

There are a handful of reasons why the “Outlook Could Not Create the Work File” problem may occur. First, the up-gradation of the operating system may cause the issue to occur. 

Second, if you move some of the settings data to another computer by chance, it also may create the issue “Outlook Could Not Create the Work File.”

Symptom

When you start Microsoft Outlook, you will receive this message –

“Outlook could not create the work file.”

Due to the causes mentioned in the previous section, this problem might occur. But, hopefully, there are solutions to this problem. 

How To Solve Outlook Could Not Create the Work File?

Although the problem may seem difficult to solve, it is easy to look into the issue carefully. There are two methods to undo this problem.

1. Edit the Registry. 
2. Change Internet Options.

Edit The Registry

Editing the registry is the first way to solve the “Outlook Could Not Create the Work File” issue. Follow the steps below to edit the registry.

1. Look for the search option in the start button of windows. Type “regedit” in the search bar. 
2. Now click on “Enter” to get access to the Registry Editor. Select “Yes” in the pop-up dialog box “ Account Control.” 
3. In the Registry Editor Window, you will find these keys in order: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders
4. Select “User Shell Folder.” Now turning to the right pane, you can see the “Cache” value. Double click on it.
5. Now the “Edit String” dialog box will appear. Here you have to input the right temporary internet file folder path.

1. For Windows Vista, 7, 8, 10, the default path is “%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Temporary Internet Files.”
2. For Windows XP, the default path is “%USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files.”

You have to click “Ok” to save the new changes and exit the Registry Editor afterward. Restart the computer once you have finished editing the registry.

Warning: If you use the registry editor to modify the registry incorrectly, serious problems may happen. These problems may require you to reinstall the operating system of your computer. So, you need to be careful before using this technique. Microsoft themselves do not guarantee using this method to be safe. 

Change Internet Option 

The second method to get rid of this problem is by changing the internet option. Here are the steps-

1. To implement this method, you can start by opening the internet explorer window. Now from the top right corner, select the gear icon. 
2. Select “Settings” from the “Internet Options” of the drop-down menu.
3. A new dialog box named “Website Data Settings” will pop up. You have to click on the “Move Folder” option. 
4. It would help if you browsed to the right temporary internet file folder from the “Browse for Folder” dialog box. You can use the folder path mentioned in step 5 of the previous method.
5. Click Ok to save the changes. Finally, it would help if you restarted the computer to see the changes activated. 

Conclusion

Outlook is one of the most used emailing software globally—people who solely depend on emailing for either work or business love Outlook. The “Outlook Could Not Create the Work File” issue is very annoying for these users. 

For Outlook users, it is best to keep a regular data backup not to lose valuable data. I hope the methods explained in this article will help Outlook users resolve “Outlook Could Not Create the Work File.”

Using tools like Outlook Repair is also another solution to this problem of Outlook.

If these methods do not work, I suggest getting help from an expert and running a complete analysis of your computer like running swot analysis.